Nonstop flight route between West Yellowstone, Montana, United States and Shemya, Alaska, United States:
Departure Airport:
Arrival Airport:
Distance from WYS to SYA:
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- About this route
- WYS Airport Information
- SYA Airport Information
- Facts about WYS
- Facts about SYA
- Map of Nearest Airports to WYS
- List of Nearest Airports to WYS
- Map of Furthest Airports from WYS
- List of Furthest Airports from WYS
- Map of Nearest Airports to SYA
- List of Nearest Airports to SYA
- Map of Furthest Airports from SYA
- List of Furthest Airports from SYA
About this route:
A direct, nonstop flight between Yellowstone Airport (WYS), West Yellowstone, Montana, United States and Eareckson Air Station (SYA), Shemya, Alaska, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 3,298 miles (or 5,307 kilometers).
A Great Circle is the shortest distance between 2 points on a sphere. Because most world maps are flat (but the Earth is round), the route of the shortest distance between 2 points on the Earth will often appear curved when viewed on a flat map, especially for long distances. If you were to simply draw a straight line on a flat map and measure a very long distance, it would likely be much further than if you were to lay a string between those two points on a globe. Because of the large distance between Yellowstone Airport and Eareckson Air Station, the route shown on this map most likely appears curved because of this reason.
Try it at home! Get a globe and tightly lay a string between Yellowstone Airport and Eareckson Air Station. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!
Departure Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | WYS / KWYS |
| Airport Name: | Yellowstone Airport |
| Location: | West Yellowstone, Montana, United States |
| GPS Coordinates: | 44°41'17"N by 111°7'4"W |
| Area Served: | West Yellowstone, Montana |
| Operator/Owner: | State of Montana |
| Airport Type: | Public |
| Elevation: | 6649 feet (2,027 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 1 |
| View all routes: | Routes from WYS |
| More Information: | WYS Maps & Info |
Arrival Airport Information:
| IATA / ICAO Codes: | SYA / PASY |
| Airport Names: |
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| Location: | Shemya, Alaska, United States |
| GPS Coordinates: | 52°42'43"N by 174°6'48"E |
| Operator/Owner: | U.S. Air Force |
| Airport Type: | Military |
| Elevation: | 97 feet (30 meters) |
| # of Runways: | 1 |
| View all routes: | Routes from SYA |
| More Information: | SYA Maps & Info |
Facts about Yellowstone Airport (WYS):
- The town of West Yellowstone is located at the west entrance to Yellowstone National Park.
- West Yellowstone jumpers and tanker are considered national resources.
- Yellowstone Airport (WYS) currently has only 1 runway.
- The furthest airport from Yellowstone Airport (WYS) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 10,685 miles (17,196 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
- Yellowstone Airport is a state-owned public-use airport located one nautical mile north of the central business district of West Yellowstone, a town in Gallatin County, Montana, United States.
- Yellowstone Airport covers an area of 735 acres at an elevation of 6,649 feet above mean sea level.
- Because of Yellowstone Airport's high elevation of 6,649 feet, planes must typically fly at a faster airspeed in order to takeoff or land at WYS. Combined with a high temperature, this could make WYS a "Hot & High" airport, where the air density is lower than it would otherwise be at sea level.
- The closest airport to Yellowstone Airport (WYS) is Dubois Municipal Airport (DBS), which is located 65 miles (105 kilometers) WSW of WYS.
Facts about Eareckson Air Station (SYA):
- The mission of Eleventh Air Force was to take advantage of the new airfields on Shemya and Attu, and carry out offensive operations against the enemy forces in the Kuriles.
- After the disastrous attack, the focus of Eleventh Air Force was shifted to a defensive posture in the event of retaliatory attacks from the Japanese.
- In August, after the Soviet Union declared war against the Japanese Empire, B-24s were dispatched on reconnaissance and intelligence-gathering missions to observe the Russian activity in the Kuriles.
- Eareckson Air Station (SYA) currently has only 1 runway.
- In July 1973, Raytheon won a contract to build a system called COBRA DANE on Shemya.
- The aerial photos taken on the raid showed the Japanese were building up forces in the area, transferring aircraft presumably from air bases on Hokkaido.
- In addition to being known as "Eareckson Air Station", other names for SYA include "Shemya Air Force Base", "Shemya Army Airfield" and " ".
- The closest airport to Eareckson Air Station (SYA) is Casco Cove Coast Guard Station (ATU), which is located 40 miles (65 kilometers) WNW of SYA.
- Because of Eareckson Air Station's relatively low elevation of 97 feet, planes can take off or land at Eareckson Air Station at a lower air speed than at airports located at a higher elevation. This is because the air density is higher closer to sea level than it would otherwise be at higher elevations.
- The furthest airport from Eareckson Air Station (SYA) is Cape Town International Airport (CPT), which is located 10,668 miles (17,168 kilometers) away in Cape Town, South Africa.
